It’s been an up and down season which includes some great performances and some terrible ones. Below, me and the GT team look back on Unai Emery’s first campaign in charge of the Arsenal.
Gary Lawrence (@garythegooner56)
Player of the Season: Lacazette
Worst Player of the Season: Mustafi
Most Improved: Maitland: Niles
Most Underwhelming: Ozil
Best Player Performance: PEA against Valencia away
Best Team Performance: Tottenham at Home
Worst Team Performance: Brighton at Home
Goal of the Season: Ramsey’s back-heel at Fulham Away
Disappointing end to the season. Some good performances against the other top 6 teams. Spurs home and away. Man Utd and Chelsea at home and also in the Europa League home and away against both Napoli and Valencia. But our away form in the PL was poor and when it came to the crunch in the run-in we were terrible and the 2nd half on Wednesday was another game where we capitulated when the pressure was on. Could have so easily been a good season but ultimately we blew it. Need to shift a lot of players this summer who just aren’t good enough.
Most voted POTY
James Howson (@BigJimmy_V)
Player of the season: Alex Lacazette
Worst player of the season: Stephan Lichtsteiner
Most improved player of the season: Pierre Emerick Aubameyang
Most underwhelming player: Mesut Ozil
Best player performance: Mesut Ozil vs Leicester at home 22/10/2018
Best team performance: Arsenal vs Spurs 2/12/2018
Worst team performance: away to Liverpool 29/12/2018
Best goal: Ramsey vs Fulham
A brief description on your thoughts of the season as whole.
Odd season , had some good performances like against Spurs and Man United as well as the latter stages of the Europa league but even towards the end it seemed like a work in progress. Emery failed to use the big name midfielders to the best of their abilities and failed to get rid of the defensive errors that in the end hurt the team when it mattered. Some bright spots but some big transfer business to be done if Arsenal are to get back into the top 4.
Mike McDonald (@mike_mmcdonald)
Player of the Season: Sokratis
Worst Player of the Season: Mustafi
Most Improved: Leno
Underwhelming Player: Ozil
Player performance of the Season: Auba vs Valencia (away)
Best team performance: (Spurs (h)
Worst team performance: Palace (h)
Best goal: Auba vs Leicester (h)
A Brief Description
I think that we may never fully find out the depths of the mess that Emery inherited on and off the field. Considering all this as a general thought I think he has done quite well to have us compete for Top 4 again and get us to a European final. Opinions will be clouded by the very poor ending. In time I hope that this season is seen in the correct perspective.
Second most votes for POTY
Nigel Evans (@ArsenalNWales)
Player of the Season: Alex Lacazette
Player of the Season: Shkodran Mustafi
Most Improved Player of the Season: Ainsley Maitland Niles
Underwhelming Player: Mesut Ozil
Best Player Performance: Aubameyang v Valencia
Best Team Performance: Napoli away
Worst Team Performance: Crystal Palace at home
Goal of the Season: Ramsey v Fulham
A Brief Description
What was turning out to be a decent first season for Emery eventually turned out to be a bit of a disaster. We should have got a Champions League place at least, there needs to be a clear out of the underperforming players and to let Ramsay leave on a free was unforgivable. As far as I’m concerned Emery has had his free season and I want to see a marked improvement next season. He really needs to start playing what he thinks is his best eleven next season rather than tinkering all the time. There were some decent performances last season but also some instantly forgettable ones. The injuries to Bellerin, Holding and Welbeck had an effect on the season as with them I believe we would have seen some better performances and results. I think with the right players coming in and Emery imprinting his ideas further on the side I would expect to see a great improvement next season.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tjotsm65XFM
Steve Wellman (@wellmington)
Player of the season: probably the obvious choice, but has to go to Laca. All round play, effort and goal scoring, set him above everyone else.
Worst player of the season: A close run race, but my vote goes to Lichtsteiner. Supposed to come in and bring experience and metal to the defence. Did neither and was fighting with Jenkinson to be AMN’s cover.
Most improved player of the season: Non of the established players made any significant steps forward, so I’m going with Joe Willock. His cameo in Baku showed he is and can step up to the plate.
Most underwhelming player: One word Mesut
Best player performance: Any number Rambo’s after announcing his departure. Played with full intent and put a large number of ‘wanted’ players to shame.
Best team performance: Spuds away. With a makeshift back 4, played to the teams strengths, controlled the game and should have won.
Worst team performance: Leicester, Wolves, Palace, Everton, take your pick
Best goal: Aubameyang’s second vs Leicester (22nd Oct 2018). A good day at the office
A brief description on your thoughts of the season as whole: Disappointing. Looked like we were advancing but too many times we dropped back into our tentative shell.
Popular choice for worst performer
John Redmond (@JrShotWho)
Player of the Season: Sokratis
Worst Player of the Season: Mustafi
Most Improved Player of the Season: Lacazette
Most Underwhelming: Ozil
Best player performance: Lucas Torreira v Liverpool
Best Team Performance: Arsenal 1 v 1 Liverpool
Worst Team Performance: Brighton at home
Best Goal: Aaron Ramsey v Fulham
A Brief Description:
At one point, I honestly thought we were seeing a combative style beginning to pay dividends – particularly in our 1-1 draw with Liverpool. Everything about that performance suggested to me that the players were beginning to buy into Emery and his system of playing out from defence while pressing from the front. Of course the second half of the season saw this fall apart. I think we will rue the missed Champions League opportunity as I can see the competition to regain our seat at the top table only getting tougher. However, I’m hopeful that Emery and the board will get rid of the deadwood and bring in players who will be more conducive to a pressing style of play.
Marble Halls (@Marblehalls_TV)
Player of the season: Lacazette
Worst player of the season: Mustafi
Most improved player of the season: Iwobi
Most underwhelming player: Ozil
Best player performance: Aubameyang Valencia (a)
Best team performance: Arsenal 2 0 Napoli
Worst team performance: Europa League final
Best goal: Ramsey vs. Fulham
A brief description on your thoughts of the season as whole.
Some improvements in areas but overall more of the same failings as under the latter part of Arsene Wenger.
Underwhelming to say the least
Alex Burns (@alexburns1088)
Player of the Season: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Worst Player of the Season: Shkodran Mustafi
Most Improved Player of the Season: Sead Kolasinac
Underwhelming Player: Mesut Ozil
Best Player Performance: Aubameyang v Valencia (a)
Best Team Performance: Tottenham (h)
Worst Team Performance: Many awful defeats but the Europa League Final was about as bad as it could get.
Goal of the Season: Lucas Torreira v Spurs (h), putting Dier on his backside and putting in past Lloris, what a moment.
A brief description:
A season which started off in a manner which gave you some optimism, then a blip, but the second half of the season bar a few games was genuinely pathetic and I definitely expected better. The way we collapsed in the last seven games when all we needed was 1 win, looking back is arguably a sackable offence in my opinion. Emery needs to buck his ideas up and sharpish.
Occasional writer who follows the Arsenal home and away. Dennis is our greatest ever.
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